Rapid breathing,racing heart,cold as a corpse, face strewn with sweat and pupils dilated like a frightened feline;Natasha woke up with a start.
Feeling disoriented,she stayed lax for a few minutes until realization brought her back to reality.She reached for the glass of water nearby.After drinking water,it dawned upon her that she is not going to be sleeping through the rest of the night.Giving up on the idea of beauty sleep,she moved out of the room into kitchen to make a cup of coffee and pondered upon the reason of her sudden awakening.
Making herself a hot cup of Joe, she looked a the clock:3 AM it said.
Natasha grumbled to herself:"My life is a real screw-up.Not only do I lose my work but also a well deserved nap.Its no use complaining,no one seems to be listening..."
Sipping on the drink,she began analyzing her life till the very second.Natasha was a good kid,although fate had been cruel to her.Her parents died in an automobile accident when she was young.The crash also took her aunt's spouse away too.Now the two of them only bad each other. Even after all this,they wouldn't complain and lived happily.Natasha was smart,lively a bit of the quieter side though but good at heart.But destiny had other plans.Her mundane life took a turn for the worst after another major incident just less than an year ago.
At long last dawn broke;Natasha groggy and owl eyed,made breakfast woke her aunt zonked on sleeping pills and managed the home as she got ready and went to work.It seemed like a fairly normal day for her until her cell phone rang.She didn't recieve too many phone calls and one in such an early hour was a little out of the blue.
"Hello!"
"You must be Natasha, I am Inspector D'souza we need you to come to the police station immediately."
"Inspector what is the problem is my aunty Mary alright?"
"Do not panic Miss Natasha it is regarding your property at the city outskirts that we need to talk about."
"Okay inspector I will be there."
That phone call was something....as Natasha's face went pale.She composed herself and got ready to go.
She reached there in 30 minutes.
"Inspector,I am Natasha...you wanted to talk to me."
Inspector:We need your permission to check the old mansion of Grandpa Max.The people who visited the temple near complained of scavangers circling it.
Grandpa Max was Natasha's maternal grandfather who owned one of the oldest houses of the town.Her mother's family was like a founding patron of the town.Her mother left it in her name.When Grandpa Max was alive,she would spend most of her time there.But it was 10 years ago.Grandpa Max passed away and it was locked as Natasha was too young to look after it.Every once a year,her aunt would visit and look after the maintainence.This was the first time it went unchecked.
Natasha called her aunt and told her about the situation.
Her aunt Sarah concerned,asked if she needed to be there with her.
Natasha declined and said she would manage.Sarah talked to the inspector regarding the pressing matter and he reassured that if required they would call her.
The police search team arrived at the destination in about an hour.Natasha gave them the keys.The gate opened and so did Natasha's childhood memories.It was like she turned 11 again.She could hear her grandpa calling her,kids nearby laughing,birds chirping and for once in such a long time she almost smiled.
Reality came crashing down as one of the officers asked her way.The house was a labyrinth:long corridors,many rooms,a huge basement and most important was to locate what exactly was wrong.As they moved,the group was greeted with a horrible stench.The other group consist of Natasha,inspector D'souza and three other officers-1 lady and 2 men.The other officers began grumbling that they had come just to locate a dead animal.Just a day earlier,there had been a huge gathering at the nearby temple and the people noticed a huge flock of vultures crows dogs and other animals trying to enter the house.They suspected the same but couldn't do anything as it was private property.
Natasha guided the team into the first room which was the giant living room.Luckily for team,as the smell intensified they knew they didn't have to venture any further.Relieved and expecting to see a dead rodent or a group of it,they opened the door and very left aghast to the scene in front of them.
To be continued.....